Make It Up
by Skordil Wabramop
Summary: What should any good heroine do when she wants to help her friends? Obviously making up convoluted plans is at the top of Ino's list. LeeIno SaiIno
1. The Long List of Girls

**Note: **This may be terrible, this may be okay. It will probably be short and mostly boring. In fact, I would go as far as to say that this won't make much sense sometimes. I wanted to do something different and this is the best I could come up with. Yes, the pairing is unusual, but it has been done before. Constructive criticism and even just complaints are always welcome.

**I don't own Naruto; the characters and all involved belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I make no money doing this. Thanks.**

* * *

**Make It Up**

_You won't lose my love, just back away. Take a weapon and aim it at someone you'll stay with. – **The Long List of Girls (the blow)**_

* * *

It was Ino's first night off from T&I in weeks. She, Tenten, and Sakura decided on a night of drinking, complaining about work and men, and generally letting loose. Hinata's invite by word of mouth got lost in her mess of work and duties as the Hyuuga Heiress. They just assumed she was as busy as always as they claimed a table inside the bar, leaving one spot open for their moon eyed friend if she were able to show.

They watched as, across the bar, Lee challenged Sasuke to any kind of _youthful_ contest he can think of.

"If I eat more sashimi than you in just one minute, you must allow me to win back the heart of Sakura!" The man forever in the green jumpsuit slammed his fist upon the bar, earning a glare from the bar keeper. Not that he noticed; his full attention was on the man sitting to his left.

"No." was all Lee received in response from the Uchiha, who looked over at the girls sitting at the table. He looked right at Sakura, a small smile on his face.

"He looks weird when he does that," Tenten remarked, sipping her sake.

"He's so hot," Sakura breathed, giving Sasuke a small wave. Instead of returning the gesture, he nodded once at her and downed his drink.

"Hey, hey, I'll compete with you, bushy brows!" Naruto yelled from his place on the left side of Sasuke. "Whoever wins has to buy all the drinks!"

"Would I be included in that?" Sai inquired, leaning across the bar from Naruto's left.

"Of course! Lee's gonna pay for everything!" Naruto exclaimed, a wide grin on his face.

The girls tuned them out, Ino gazing at Sai for a moment longer than she intended before smirking at the other women at her table. "I wonder if Hinata would've thrown her duties to the wind if we had told her Naruto would be here."

"You know it," Tenten giggled, her face gaining a slight blush already.

"What are you going to do about lover boy over there?" the blonde asked, sipping on her water. She wanted to loosen up like the rest of them, but Ibiki had made it clear that there was a chance she would have to return to work to help _probe some minds_. Besides, she knew sober was just as fun because if anyone knew how to have a good time under even the most dire of circumstances, it was Ino.

"I'm not going to do anything. Sasuke doesn't see him as a threat so why make a fuss?" Sakura took a gulp of her sake, sighing, and her companions could tell she was obviously bothered by Lee's pestering.

"Want me to do something about it?" Ino offered, not sure where she was going with the question, but hoping she could at least make this night an interesting one.

Sakura raised an eyebrow in question. "What could you possibly do to make the situation better?"

"I don't know about better," Ino laughed, taking another sip. "But I could try to talk him out of harassing your precious Sasuke for the rest of the night if it would make my _best friend _rest easy."

The pink haired woman shrugged, ignoring the stress that Ino put on "best friend". She didn't need to be reminded _again_ that she and Ino had come to terms with their rivalry. Lately Ino seemed to find different ways of getting under her skin that didn't involve calling her out on her large forehead or fighting for Sasuke. "Sure, good luck."

Ino stood from the table, a smirk on her face. As the blonde walked toward the group of men, Tenten giggled, giving Sakura a mirthful look, "No one can talk Lee out of anything he really wants. Doesn't she know who he is?"

Again, Sakura shrugged. She was just here to have a good evening.

Lee paused in his furious eating of the raw fish when a small but firm hand gripped his arm. "Lee-kun, please come with me." He looked over his shoulder to see Ino, confusion making its way across his face. He let her pull him out of the bar, still wondering what was suddenly going on. They stopped a few yards away from the entrance of the bar.

"Look, lover boy, you need to stop." Ino got straight to the point. "It has been months since you dated Sakura. She obviously doesn't want to be with you or she would. She's with Sasuke now. It's that simple." She had her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowed.

"It is not that simple, Ino-san." Lee immediately defended, knowing where this was going. He had heard this talk from both Naruto and Tenten on multiple occasions. "Sakura-chan has a special place in my heart. She cannot –"

Ino cut him off, her hands reaching up to the back of his head, pulling him down toward her. She brushed her lips over his, resisting the urge to laugh when he became quiet and still. It wasn't really a kiss. He smelled awfully of sashimi, which Ino knew to be completely disgusting. Furthermore, why the hell would Ino want to kiss Lee of all people? The guy she would rather be kissing was inside the bar, probably giving off fake smiles to anyone who looked his way. Ino just couldn't stand to hear Lee's ridiculous descriptions of his feelings for Sakura. She didn't want any flowery language reaching her ears unless it was about herself.

Lee pulled Ino's hands away from his head, saying quietly, "Fine." Then he was gone.

_Success!_ Ino thought, heading back into the bar. She was greeted by a cheer from Tenten and an inquiring look from Sakura. "He said he'd stop for now," she told them as she sat back into her seat, flipping her long hair over her shoulder.

"I can't believe it worked. I've told him to back off countless times." The brunette woman at the table pouted a little, looking into her drink before taking a sip.

Ino's smirk grew. "I'm just good, Tenten."

"Are you always going to get him to back off for me?" Sakura asked, a blush on her cheeks from the sake settling into her tummy.

"I don't know why I would have to," Ino scoffed. "Sasuke can do it from now on. Besides, Lee might fall out of love with you someday."

Tenten burst out laughing. "No, that's unlikely. Lee has the spirit of someone who never gives up. Really, do you guys know him at all?"

The pink haired kunoichi looked at her friends apprehensively. "You think he'll always love me? Really?"

Seeing Sakura's look, Tenten shrugged and looked down at her drink thoughtfully, almost shyly. "I don't know. Maybe if he dated someone else, he could fall out of love with you. I don't know how we could get him to be interested in someone else enough to date them, though. Maybe I could – "

"Ino could do it!" Sakura nearly screamed, a new grin on her face.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

Sakura's grin just widened. "You're totally a flirt, and you're bossy. You're good at getting guys to date you even if they don't like you, right?"

Ino snorted indignantly. "What guy _doesn't_ like me?" Tenten opened her mouth to say something, but Ino put up a hand to stop her. "And _don't_ say Lee. Only Lee would have the hots for Sakura anyway. I'm – "

"Lee _and_ Sasuke," Tenten finally interjected before putting a hand on her mouth and giggling.

The blonde fought the urge to order a hard drink. Some friends these women were! "Sasuke is irrelevant."

"Ino, I _dare_ you to date Lee." Sakura's eyes were narrowed, her huge grin still in place.

Many thoughts raced through Ino's head. _What are we, twelve year olds?_ She wanted to ask. She didn't see anything in dares anymore. What she did see were Tenten's wide eyes and slight frown at this dare. She noticed that the weapons mistress looked ready to object to the idea. That's when she realized that maybe Tenten had a thing for that weird Lee. With that, Ino downed her glass of water as if it were a shot. "Fine, he's as good as mine."

She had a plan.

* * *

It's been almost a week, and she hasn't had a single chance to begin her plan. She'd show Sakura! Today she had to fill in for her mom at the shop. Apparently the Allied Mothers Force was meeting up for some thing that Ino had no interest in hearing about, if she were perfectly honest. She saw him the first time he ran past her parents' flower shop as she was opening it. She also saw him the second time ten minutes later while she was setting up the register and putting on her apron. She was waiting for him the third time, ready to cut him off.

"Good morning, Ino-san!" Lee greeted her, choosing to ignore her sly grin as she stood in his path. "Just going for my post-work out, pre-training run!"

"Right, right," Ino brushed off his words with a wave of her hand. "We are going on a date tonight. Meet me at Gyu-Kaku tonight at seven. Bring money because you're paying."

"But I have – "

"It doesn't matter, Lee! You're going on a date with me tonight!" She crossed her arms and flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Gyu-Kaku. Seven pm. Money, bring it."

"Okay, Ino-san, but I do not understand why – "

"We kissed, didn't we? You're obligated to go on at least one date with me." Ino knew how to play her cards right.

Lee blushed uncomfortably, looking away. "Of course. I will meet you tonight. Goodbye."

Another success.

_I may be bossy, but bossy gets shit done._

* * *

Ino wasn't expecting much out of her day in the flower shop. Flowers had become incredibly boring when compared to her job with the T&I force. So she was more than ecstatic when Sai entered the store.

"Welcome!" She called, smiling at him and hoping her apron wasn't as dirty as she felt it was. "What can I get you, Sai-kun?"

He smiled at her before looking around at all of the flowers as he walked past them. "What do you like?"

"You," she said without shame.

His smile faded, and she nearly laughed at his almost blank expression.

"I like tulips and chrysanthemums, but I'd have to say violets are my favorite," Ino offered an actual answer. He nodded, his smile returning. She knew it was fake, but she didn't care. If a fake smile gave her such butterflies, then his real smile must be breathtaking.

"Give me some of those."

After paying for them, he stood around the store for several minutes looking between the flowers in his hand and Ino.

"Were you going to give those to someone?" As the daughter of flower shop owners, Ino knew that most flowers that were bought from there were given to girls throughout Konoha.

"Do you want them?" He held them out at her. "I read that when you find someone attractive, you give them gifts and they kiss you."

The blonde kunoichi smirked. She liked where this was going. "Sai," she said quietly and reached across the counter for the flowers, instead grabbing him by the wrist to pull him closer. Letting her pull him forward, Sai's impassive expression remained even when Ino leaned over the counter to kiss him on the cheek. "You don't need flowers to get kisses from me."

"Then would you kiss me here?" He pointed at his mouth.

She really liked where this was going.

* * *

He wore the jumpsuit. Did Ino forget to tell him not to wear the blasted thing? It didn't matter! He should know not to wear that on a date! Ino had just gotten to the restaurant when she spotted him, so patient and so _green_.

"Good evening, Ino-san!" He gave her a blinding smile and a thumbs up, but something made Ino feel like it wasn't as sincere as he'd like her to think. _Good! No one should be happy wearing that thing on a date with Ino Yamanaka of all people._ She knew it didn't really matter since she didn't consider this a real date, but _still_.

Things were quiet until they were eating their food. Only a few bites into the meal, Ino stared at Lee, making him uncomfortable. "So, you know, you should consider dating other girls and leaving Sakura alone." She didn't bring up that she couldn't imagine that Lee had a long list of girls waiting for the chance to date him.

The man's expression looked pained, and Ino couldn't help but feel offended. "Ino-san, you are a beautiful representation of all that is youthful, but I cannot betray Sakura-chan. I am only here because you are Sakura's best friend, and honestly..." He trailed off, seeming to look into the distance.

At what, Ino wasn't sure, but she did _not _have time for this. "Honestly, what? Lee, you better spill it!"

"Honestly, I came in the hopes that you would work with me to devise a secret plan to split up Sasuke and Sakura!" He raised a fist in the air as he spoke, but was promptly whacked upon the head with a fist belonging to the annoyed blonde.

"No way!" Ino glared daggers into Lee, lowering her voice. "That's messed up, Lee. Especially for you. Besides if you wanted to devise a secret plan, it would be better to not go yelling it, you obnoxious idiot."

Lee rubbed his head, appreciating that Ino wasn't nearly as strong as Sakura. He looked at his dinner companion hopefully and whispered, "So if I am quiet, you will help me – "

After another swift hit, Ino growled, "No. Isn't Sakura's happiness important to you?"

Resting a hand on his head, Lee's expression softened, his eyes looking down in shame. "Of course."

"Then date other people, Lee. Keep yourself open," Ino advised, looking at her nails. "Sakura would love for you to let her go and find love elsewhere."

"But my heart – "

"Lee," Ino warned.

"I love Saku – "

Ino slapped one of her hands over his mouth."Lee, shut the hell up. What if I set you up with Tenten?" _Here we go_, Ino thought. _I'll just throw that out there, Lee will date Tenten and she'll get her freaky green man. Sakura will get to rest easy, and I'll be the hero. Er, heroine._ She removed her hand, allowing him the chance to speak again.

"I could not date Tenten. She is my comrade and nothing more."

Ino resisted the urge to hit him again. "Why not? Not even for Sakura?"

At this, she was surprised to see Lee blush and grin sheepishly. "Ino-san, Tenten is a strong woman, but she is not the type I would really. . ."

Ino quirked an eyebrow. _So even Rock Lee has preferences when it comes to women. What turns him on, large foreheads?_ She snorted to herself at the thought before finally saying, "Fine, then date me." When his eyes widened, she waved a hand at him dismissively. "It's for practice. I'll show you how nice it is to date someone other than Sakura, and then I'll set you free when you're ready to hit the dating scene. Do we have a deal? For Sakura?"

She held out a hand, but instead of taking it, Lee gave her a thumbs up. She supposed that was the best she was going to get.

On her way home, her mind reeled with ideas and plans. She would need to talk to Tenten soon and set everything into motion.

If there was something that Ino knew about herself is that she was the villain. She may not have tried to kidnap someone or destroy a village, but she was the mean girl who would steal the lead girl's boyfriend (or at least try), the bitch who would crush any girl's self-esteem, the woman whose competitive nature would end up being her downfall. She knew she was beautiful, but that only made it worse. The mean girls were always beautiful, weren't they. This was a shot she was just going to take. The trouble better be damn well worth it. Even if it was only a minor one, she wanted to see herself as the heroine of this story.

* * *

Metal hit wood, burying itself deep into the post. Heavy breathing pierced the night. Tenten leaned on the post, tired and angry. She wouldn't be so mad about Lee missing their weekly sparring session if he hadn't been so careless about telling her it was because he had a date with Ino. So Ino was seriously doing this? Lee didn't deserve to be played, but after being so in love with Sakura for so long, of course he'd only want the next most beautiful woman of their generation. Just another woman who wouldn't appreciate him for who he was. She sighed, fighting off these negative thoughts. Surely, nothing would come from this one date. Lee loved Sakura If anyone could get him to forget the pink haired woman, it would be his best friend and teammate, right?

Picking up some kunai, she laughed at herself._ Yeah right, Tenten_. It wasn't like she wanted to date Lee. She just knew that she was the only one who could see how wonderful Lee was.

She just knew she was pissed.

* * *

I've never written Sai before. I may have him completely off, but this will just be how he is for this story because reasons.


	2. Pardon Me

**Note: **I know I'm not a gifted writer, but I try. I edit my own things so if there are mistakes (and there will be), sorry in advance. I hope this entertains anyway. To everyone reading this and to those who have reviewed, thank you. I really appreciate it!

_I've felt a heart before, and I'm learning what a heart is for. I believe a heart is made to feel the things that lay in front of it. And I lay before you. – **Pardon Me (the blow)**_

* * *

**Date Two (one? Did the first one even count?)**

They were meeting in a small cafe on the quiet side of Konoha that neither of them really visited. The instant she saw Lee already there, waiting for her at a table, she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Okay, this needs to stop. Ino ran her hand over her face. Exasperation was not a cute look for her. Or maybe it was. She didn't have time to consider the idea. Joining him, she dropped her arms on the table and sighed heavily. "Lee, I shouldn't have to tell you that wearing your jumpsuit on a date is a bad idea."

The man looked down at his get up. That's what he always wore. "What is wrong with it?"

"It's hideous, Lee," she said matter-of-factly, steepling her fingers and closing her eyes. "Appearance is a big deal. Wear casual clothes on dates."

"You are not wearing casual clothes," Lee pointed out.

"These _are_ my casual clothes!" Ino screeched, opening her eyes in a huff. Sure she was wearing her shinobi attire, but these were good enough for a date with _Lee._ "A person has to be comfortable and look good no matter the situation." She didn't want to make a habit out of hitting him, but if he was going to make stupid comments, it was going to be inevitable.

"Ino-san," He paused, his dark eyes widening slightly. "You are a confusing woman."

The blonde let her eyes roll this time. "All women are confusing. Just remember to wear something else when you go on a date. Make the girl feel like she is worth the trouble."

When he pulled a notebook out of his flak jacket and began to take notes, Ino couldn't help but smile even though she was confused at his willingness. Well, her plans couldn't work if he wasn't willing to take her advice. _Don't question good things, Ino._ She thought to herself as she gazed at his determined expression with a little bit of envy. What wouldn't this fool do for Sakura?

"Also, gifts. Girls love presents."

"Like when Neji would give Tenten things when they dated?"

Ino hadn't known a lot about Neji personally, but she couldn't help the surprised expression that slipped onto her face. Wasn't Lee one of people affected most by Neji's death? She could barely have a casual conversation about Asuma with Chouji or Shikamaru without crying a little, let alone with someone who didn't really know him. Suddenly, her hands became very interesting, and she cleared her throat. The conversation was going in the right direction even if it wasn't how she intended to go about it. "Exactly. Do you know what kinds of things Tenten likes?"

Lee's face brightened, a grin growing on his face. "I do know what Tenten likes! I am going to become the master of dating! Then I will win Saku – I mean, I will win the heart of any woman I want!"

Ino looked up from from her hands to smirk at him.

"For Sakura-chan!"

The kunoichi ran a hand over her face again. She really hoped she could make exasperation look good.

* * *

Tenten couldn't help but feel cornered when her blonde friend stopped her on her way home. It wasn't like she couldn't simply walk past and ignore her which had definitely been Tenten's plans when she first spotted Ino. She just had the feeling that the woman in front of her was going to ask something of her that would only make the brunette as angry as she had been when Lee had told her about their second date going well.

"Let's hang out this weekend." Ino moved to link her arm with Tenten's. They began to walk in the direction that the older woman had been going. "I haven't gotten the chance to see any of the girls lately with my work and seeing Lee during my free time. You've been pretty distant, Tenten. I have so much to tell you about that green goofball."

_There isn't a thing you could tell me about Lee that I wouldn't already know_, Tenten thought viciously although she was curious to hear about what went on during their date because Lee was keeping his mouth shut about the whole thing. Personal business be damned, she just wanted to know if Ino had sank her wanton claws into her teammate already. "What exactly – " was all she got out before Ino interrupted her.

"I'll tell you all about it when you come hang out with me this weekend! Saturday? Go on a leisurely hike with me, hmm?" The demands came out of the blonde's mouth as if they were what she had been wanting to say from the beginning.

Unwinding her arm from Ino's, Tenten looked at a sign on a building, pretending to read it as she thought. Was she curious enough? This invitation to hang out just seemed like a way for Ino to rub the fact that Lee was dating her into her face. She'd rather not hear all the gory details in case Lee and Ino had actually done something, like what if they had _kissed_? No way. It would only make her feel worse about the predicament. Ino was her friend, but this was ridiculous. Making her decision on where she stood in this situation, she looked at Ino, feigning a regretful expression. "Sorry, Ino. I have a mission this weekend. We can hang out some other time."

"Oh really?" Ino's eyes briefly narrowed as she crossed her arms. "Well, I guess that can't be helped."

When she was finally alone in her apartment, Tenten kicked her sandals off and wondered how she was going to get the hokage to give her a mission for the weekend.

* * *

She couldn't just let her plans crumble before they even begin. Ino sighed dramatically as she flopped herself onto her bed. So what, Tenten couldn't help that she had a mission. Huffing another heavy sigh, Ino rolled onto the floor, her hair covering the hard wood floor and her face. She wouldn't be defeated, but she certainly felt so. Her next date with Lee was on Saturday. He had suggested hiking because _why the hell not_, Ino thought. She had been hoping to enact phase one (phase one of one because why do plans need to be so complex?) of her plan by setting Tenten up on the date. Tenten would have been surprised. Lee would have been surprised. Maybe they'd kiss, she didn't know what to expect!

"Whatever could have happened definitely isn't happening now! It would have been so perfect!" she yelled, strands of hair flying away from her face. _They would have met up, fallen in love through the power of hiking, and my job would be done. _Why she thought things would ever be that simple, she won't really understand.

That's when she heard a knock at her door.

She wasn't expecting anyone. Maybe her neighbor was being fussy because she was yelling. That bitch. With a hop, Ino quickly went to the door of her apartment. It wasn't her overweight, hateful neighbor. It was Sai.

"Good evening?" Sai acted like he wasn't sure if it was a question or a statement. Nonetheless, he smiled.

"It is now." Ino grinned. She hadn't had any time to work on her own self interests (namely Sai and his cute butt) since starting this thing with Lee. She hoped Sai didn't know about it. He was the one person she didn't want to know. Although it was only an arrangement with the green beast, Sakura and Tenten both seemed to believe, thankfully, that Ino was actually dating Lee.

Of course, she could just tell them all the truth, but that would just be too easy. Heroines went through trials and roughed it out. Ino's trial was helping Lee in the "getting over Sakura" area of his life, matchmaking Tenten and Lee, and helping her best friend get an obnoxious man off her back. Besides, Sakura had dared her to do it. Maybe she wasn't twelve anymore, but she'd be damned if she couldn't handle a challenge thrown at her by the pink haired woman.

She just did _not_ want Sai thinking she was the kind of woman who would cheat on her boyfriend however fake said boyfriend may be. She was a heroine in this story, not a villain.

"Is it?" Sai seemed curious though his expression didn't show it clearly. He held up a bottle. "Naruto said people bond over shared inebriation."

Ino grinned wickedly before pulling him into her apartment. "You're a life saver, Sai-kun." She didn't know why he was being so friendly with her. So romantic – no, romantic wasn't the right word. So flirty? No, still wrong. She placed the bottle on her kitchen table, giving the man a long look. He was only smiling at her. She always thought that women were much more mysterious and tricky than men. It was one of her gender's upper hands. Sai was an exception. At least when she was attracted to Sasuke, he had made his intentions clear. He had never wanted her. Sai did.

With that, all other thoughts were thrown away.

* * *

**Date Three**

This wasn't exactly Ino's idea of a fun date. She'd rather like for a strong, sexy man to be doting on her, fanning her and giving her cold sweets to fight off the heat of this absurdly hot day. Nope, this was not her idea. Standing next to her was the ever spirited Lee in what Ino had to admit were okay, although plain, casual clothes. A dark green t-shirt and gray pants. Good enough. They were facing the entrance of the path that he had decided they needed to take up the mountain. It looked simple enough to Ino, but it also looked _boring_.

"If I hike to the end of the trail before noon, I will get over Sakura-chan!" Lee threw a fist up, giving Ino a grin.

"Then get to it, lover boy. You have two hours." Ino knew he needed encouragement and tried to offer it when he wasn't grating on her nerves.

He raced off, and she couldn't help but feel annoyed that he would leave her behind. Sure, she told him to hurry. Yeah, she wants him to get over Sakura. That's the point, right? But this was still supposed to be a date. Kind of. She followed him up the path, letting the forest swallow her.

An hour into the hike, Ino found herself panting, ready to take a break. Why was it so hot? She gazed up at the tree branches above her, sunlight shining through the leaves before kissing her bare arms. She was wearing a t-shirt, too, like Lee. She wasn't dumb. Hiking was an easy task for a shinobi, who pretty much had to endure much worse nearly every day. Nonetheless, she knew proper clothing was necessary. Simple hike, simple clothes. It was a date, after all. _Stupid Tenten for having a mission and not being here._

She resisted the impulse to jump up into the branches above to catch up with Lee. He must have made it to the end of the path by now, right? It had only been an hour. She wasn't familiar with this place so she had no idea how long it would take. Stepping off the dirt path, Ino kicked a tree a few times before sitting on a large rock. Some date this was turning out to be. This was not only boring, but she couldn't see what she was getting out of it. Her bangs were sticking to her forehead, slick with sweat.

She wanted to go back to the village, take a hot bath, and talk to her girlfriends. Maybe even make out with Sai some more. He had left on a mission the night before, which irritated her. Just when things seemed to get heated between them, he leaves her to deal with Lee all alone. Never mind the fact that he doesn't know about the situation at all. She just knew that when this supposed date was over, she was _not _going to be kissing Sai when she returned to the village.

Worst part of the whole situation, she noted when her stomach growled loudly, was that Lee had their lunches. Standing up resolutely, she continued her trek up the mountain.

–

"Ino-san! I made it before noon!"

_Kami, this can't be my life_. Ino was near the end of the trail forty five minutes after taking that break. She wanted to beat Lee to a pulp as soon as she made it to the end of the path. First he leaves her behind, and now he was – what _was_ he doing? She gave him a once over. He was grinning at her, sweaty, and shirtless. She couldn't say she was all that surprised by his muscles because being a taijutsu master had its perks. Still, she looked at him appreciatively for a few seconds before flopping herself down next to where he was standing.

Um, he just wasn't as hairy as she imagined he would be. That was all.

"Good for you. Are you over Sakura now?" Ino asked as she rested her arms on her knees, her chin on her arms.

"Yes!" Lee exclaimed, joining her on the grass. "Actually, I do not really know. I think so."

"If Sakura were here right now and wanted to kiss you, would you do it?"

"Yes!" was his immediate response.

Ino chuckled a little. "Then you aren't over her, you idiot. Would you kiss Tenten if she wanted you to?"

This he had to think about. Ino's green eyes grazed over his tight stomach muscles, then moved upward to see him frown slightly. "Probably yes. If she truly wanted me to."

The blonde raised her head, looking right into his eyes. "Would you feel bad about it? Like guilty because you like Sakura?"

"Yes. . ." He admitted, his frown deepening.

She sighed a little. This was what she was expecting. The power of hiking wasn't worth a damn, apparently. All it did was make her sweat in places that she hadn't done in a while. "I wouldn't mind some wind right now. It's so humid," she complained, her bottom lip protruding as she tried to blow a breath up at her forehead. Shouldn't be hard since she had a cute _normal sized_ forehead.

Her train of thought stopped when she felt a hand move her bangs to rest behind her ear, then a cool breath caressing her forehead. "Is that better?"

Her eyes widened in mild astonishment. "What if I wanted you to kiss me?"

Wait, why had she said that? Must be the heat.

"Do you want me to, Ino-san?" Lee didn't look embarrassed, just confused.

She snickered, knocking away thoughts of any kind of lip lock with this strange man, before patting him on the cheek just a bit condescendingly. "If I wanted a kiss from you, I would just kiss you myself."

This time, he did blush. _I take it back, Kami, this must be my life. Ino Yamanaka, making men blush everywhere, _she thought. Giving his body one more appreciative glance, she got back to her feet. "Where is this spring you spoke of earlier? I'm hungry and sweaty so let's go."

He led her down a much narrower path leading away from the trail to a small secluded spring and was that a waterfall? How cute.

She promptly took off her shirt, revealing a swimsuit underneath. Nothing too flashy. It was a date, but she kept it tame for Lee. _Not that he's doing the same for me_, she thought to herself, sneaking yet another peek at her companion's muscular frame as he removed his shoes.

They ate lunch in a comfortable silence, their feet dipping in and out of the cold water. She noticed that he ate a lot and offered some of her food to him since she knew she couldn't eat a full meal; she never did. He smiled at her gratefully before he shoved some of her rice balls into his mouth.

"This feels great on my feet," Ino said, wiggling her toes in the water. "Good job, lover boy. Other than leaving me in the beginning, this date hasn't been so bad." She looked at him with a smirk, jabbing him in the side. Maybe it was so she could feel his muscles for herself. For whatever reason she did it, she knew she was flirting, and quickly pulled her hand back. Ino wasn't the kind of girl who flirted awkwardly. Especially not with Rock Lee.

"Yosh!" The boisterous man cried, pounding the air with both fists. "But when will we be done with this?"

Ino knew what he was talking about, but played dumb, raising her eyebrows and tilted her head to the side. She wanted him to break off their little arrangement himself. As soon as he felt confident enough to approach another woman (namely, Tenten, Ino hoped) and let Sakura go, he would be able to figure it out on his own. She didn't need to be the one to tell him. "Huh?"

"This thing between us cannot go on forever," he supplied, his eyes piercing her in an unwavering gaze.

"But it could," she breathed, slowly putting a hand on his arm. She knew what she was doing was a bad idea, but she also knew that if she scared Lee a little bit, he would try harder to get over Sakura. _Just don't fall in love with me, lover boy_, she thought, sliding her hand up his arm and to the back of his neck. She leaned toward him, placing a light kiss on his collar-bone. "Think about it, I would get to boss you around forever."

"I-Ino-chan!" Lee jumped up, away from her.

All she could do was burst into vivacious laughter.

* * *

"How's the thing?" Sakura asked as she entered Ino's apartment.

"Don't you ever knock?" Ino said with a playful glare, placing the magazine she had been reading onto her coffee table. She sat up on her sofa, knowing if she continued to lounge, her best friend would just sit on her. She knew what Sakura was talking about, but the pink haired woman could be so purposely vague sometimes. The _thing_ could have meant several things. But Ino knew.

"Whatever, Ino-pig." Sakura joined her on the small sofa, drawing her legs up. "Just tell me about your dates with Lee."

"They're good," Ino told her curtly while putting on a show of examining her nails. "Why? Have you heard anything?"

"I heard you guys went out into the forest for _hours _today and came back all sweaty. Lee was even shirtless," Sakura snickered, using her foot to jab at the blonde. "Is that really how it was today?"

Ino knocked the offending foot away and put on a sly smile. "It's true. He took me to this waterfall and confessed his undying lust to me. Then he ripped his clothes off, showed me his whopping package, and then we made sweet love for hours. Underneath the waterfall, of course."

Not a second later, Sakura smacked Ino on the shoulder in perturbation. "Yeah, right! What parts of that are true?!"

The blonde grinned mischievously, ignoring the horrid pain in her shoulder thanks to Sakura's hit. "You don't want to know."

"Good point," Sakura conceded with a solemn nod. "Anyway, I came to ask if you and Lee wanted to go on a group date with me, Sasuke, Naruto, and Hinata."

"You're kidding, right?" Ino's naughty attitude flew south, being replaced with annoyance. "Lee and I haven't been together long enough to do that." If they had a double date this soon, Lee would only be tempted by Sakura. Ino knew her best friend wasn't stupid so she must want to do this just to complicate things. It was basically like saying _'You think you can get Lee to get over me that easily? I'd like to see you try, Ino-pig.'_ Damn it, Sakura.

"If you've already seen his _throbbing _package, then what's a little date with other couples?" Sakura asked, prodding the blonde with her foot again.

"I said _whopping. _If it were throbbing, I wouldn't know what to do with myself," Ino corrected, trying to make light of the new challenge presented by her friend despite her annoyance. "I'll talk to Lee, and we'll go on the stupid group date. Just let me know when and where."

As her best friend left, Ino couldn't help but smile to herself. Count on Sakura to make life interesting, not as if her life wasn't interesting as it was. _You're on, billboard brow._

* * *

As she layed out her bed roll, Tenten peered over at her partner for the mission she had practically begged the hokage to give her. He was lean and handsome; what she knew of him came from Sakura. "Sai, do you need help?" She knew he was far from incompetent, but she felt she needed a reason to talk to him. He didn't seem like the type who liked chit chat.

He ignored her.

_Okay then._

The mission they were on had been simple; they were resting for the night on their way back to Konoha. He had first watch, but because it was such a hot night she laid awake, thinking about what Ino could be doing. She felt a little guilty for turning down the bossy blonde's invitation to hang out. Tenten didn't consider herself one to hold grudges anyway. When she returned home, though, she knew she was going to avoid the woman like a plague. A wind blew past her, making her sigh. That was the first relief from the heat that she had experienced all day.

"Can I paint you?"

The voice in the night shocked her, halting her thoughts.

"Pardon me?" She sat up, looking over at her stoic companion.

"You don't look like Sakura or Ino. You're different; I want to paint you."

_Why would I look like either of them? Aside from the obvious difference in looks, I don't waste my time on make up or extreme hair care,_ she thought, feeling a little uncomfortable and annoyed. It was a full moon, but there was no way he could see her that well. Despite all this, she nodded.

When he smiled, she blinked before relaxing and letting out a small laugh, the wind carrying it away.

* * *

To me, Sai is a bit of an enigma.


End file.
